Yesterdays
by cj10824
Summary: He couldn’t believe she was gone. It all seemed unreal to him. The two were nearly inseparable, and now he must cope with losing her. Oneshot.


**AN: This oneshot was inspired by the song "Yesterdays" by Switchfoot. It's an awesome song, and I recommend checking it out. Even though this oneshot is kind of sad, I hope you give it a shot. Let me know what you think. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything HSM or the song "Yesterdays"...unfortunately. **

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**Yesterdays**

He literally felt his heart break. The words he'd just heard the week before still repeated over and over in his head. Tears streamed down his face as he collapsed on the floor beside his bed. He was supposed to feel a little closure at this point—the reality was supposed to set in. But that wasn't the case.

_**Flowers cut and brought inside**_

_**Black cars in a single line**_

_**Your family in suits and ties**_

_**And you're free**_

He couldn't believe she was gone. It all seemed unreal to him. A normal, routine day had been turned into a whirlwind of hurt and pain. He couldn't imagine never seeing her face again, never hearing her voice. Almost every day of his life thus far had been spent with her as a part of it. She was not only a part of his family. She was his best friend.

_**The ache I feel inside**_

_**Is where the life has left your eyes**_

_**I'm alone for our last goodbye**_

_**But you're free**_

He remembered everything that happened that day. Everything had been going so perfectly. It was the weekend, and Troy and his friends had driven down to the beach for the day. It was a normal occurrence—having lived in San Diego all of his life, he went to the beach whenever he had the opportunity. He had woken up early that morning so that he could catch the good waves in the early hours.

After picking up Gabriella, his girlfriend of a little over one year, Troy had hurried down to the beach so they could get a good spot. Finding a good spot on the beach during the summer was hard to come by, especially for a big group. Gabriella and Troy arrived at the beach around 7:00 in the morning.

The two surfed for a little while and found themselves cuddled on the beach when their friends arrived. Troy felt a small smile tug on his face, thinking of how their moment had been interrupted.

"_What the heck!?" Troy and Gabriella both yelped and shivered as a bucket of cold water was thrown on them. _

_Troy looked up to see his favorite cousin smirking back down at him. "Hey lovebirds!" _

"_Lacey!" _

"_Hey Troy!" Lacey smiled sweetly down at Troy. _

"_I'm giving you three seconds. 1…2…3!" Troy sprung up and chased Lacey down the beach. He grinned, hearing his girlfriend's giggles and cheering in the background. Reaching out, he wrapped his arms around Lacey. _

"_Brie, come here!" Troy called out for his girlfriend who raced over. "I'll get her shoulders, you get her feet." _

_Troy and Gabriella picked Lacey up, tightening their grip on her as she tried to squirm. Wading out into the water, Troy and Gabriella came to a stop. _

"_Payback time Lace!" Troy nodded at his girlfriend, and the two released their hold, laughing as Lacey fell into the cold ocean water. _

_Troy stepped next to Gabriella, wrapping his arm around her shoulder while she put hers around his waist before they headed back to shore. _

Troy's mind was filled with the last memories he'd shared with his cousin. The two had always been inseparable. Troy was only two months older than Lacey. They had been neighbors since birth. Almost every childhood memory of his had Lacey in it. Even though they were cousins, the two were best friends. Lacey was always there for Troy. She was with him on his first day of school eleven years earlier. Lacey was by Troy's side when he first learned to surf. She was the one to give him advice when he was freaking out, nervous about asking Gabriella out on a date. She'd been the first to congratulate him on making the Varsity basketball team two years ago. And now, she was gone.

She wouldn't be there for graduation. He wouldn't be able to joke around with her as they packed to go away for college. She wouldn't be around when he needed advice on how and when to propose to Gabriella. When he got married, he wouldn't hear her taunting him about not screwing things up and tripping when he led Gabriella in their first dance. His kids would never know one of the most important people in his life.

Lacey Christina Bolton was only sixteen years old. A star basketball player and a straight A student. One of the kindest people Troy knew. A girl with a promising future that had been taken away.

Just one week ago, he was joking around with her, throwing her into the water, playing Frisbee on the beach. And then he had heard those words that had shook up his world—the words that pierced him, bringing him to tears.

"_Troy, Lacey was in a car accident today on her way home. She didn't make it." _

Troy hadn't heard anything else his parents had said. He hadn't felt his girlfriend's arms around him, holding him tightly as he cried into her shoulder. He didn't feel her tears dripping down on his skin. In that moment, he had felt numb.

_**I remember you like yesterday, yesterday**_

_**I still can't believe you're gone**_

_**I remember you like yesterday, yesterday**_

_**And until I'm with you, I carry on**_

As Troy's tears cascaded down his cheeks, dripping onto the floor beneath him, he felt two arms wrap around his waist. Two soft, warm arms that held him close while he turned and sobbed into her shoulders.

He didn't know how long he'd been lying on the floor before she had come. He presumed only a few minutes. He knew she had seen him run away from the funeral service after he'd tossed the rose onto the casket. He knew she wouldn't be that far behind him. And he was right. She was here now, holding him close, not judging his tears in any way. Staying by his side even while his world was being ripped apart.

_**Adrift on your ocean floor**_

_**I feel weightless numb and sore**_

_**A part of you and me is torn**_

_**But you're free**_

"Shhh. Baby come on," Gabriella soothingly ran her fingers through his dark brown hair, doing her best to lift him off the ground with the arm wrapped around his waist.

Troy pushed himself off the ground, never loosening his grip on her as Gabriella walked them over to his bed. Gabriella pulled him down to lay beside her, tightly wrapping her arms around his back, running her fingers up and down his back. Troy let his arms tighten around her back, gripping her shoulders while their sobs filled the room.

Moments later, the two had fallen asleep, one of the few peaceful moments they had experienced in the past week. When Troy woke up the next morning, he replayed his dream. He had seen her, in his mind. The dream seemed so real. He and Lacey were in her backyard, playing a game of one-on-one, trash talking as they normally did. When his eyes opened, the reality had set back in and tears burned his eyes.

_**I woke from a dream last night**_

_**I dreamt that you were by my side**_

_**Reminding me I still had life**_

_**In me**_

Troy felt a soft hand on his cheek, gently wiping away a few stray tears. Reaching his own hand up, he covered her small hand with his, holding it against his cheek. Troy felt a small smile tug on his face as Gabriella took his hand, bringing it up to her lips and softly kissing it before laying her head on his chest.

"Bad dream?" Gabriella whispered against his chest.

Troy pulled her up on his body, pressing his lips against her forehead. "Not bad really. It just felt like she was still here."

"What was it about?"

"Basketball." Troy grinned.

"Figures." Gabriella giggled. "Do you ever dream of anything else?"

"You." There was no hint of sarcasm or joking in his voice. Honesty seeped through as his piercing blue eyes connected with her dark brown ones.

A blush graced her features, and Troy leaned his head up, capturing her lips with his. Gabriella sighed as their lips parted, burying her face in the crook of his neck.

"Kiss up," she teased, kissing him softly on his neck. Troy chuckled, this moment being the first he had laughed since that day at the beach.

"You know, before we started dating, Lacey used to always say that to me."

"Yeah?" Gabriella probed, Troy nodding in response.

"Yeah. She used to always tease me about how I acted around you." Troy laughed, memories replaying themselves. "Every time I would compliment you…tell you that you looked gorgeous, or congratulate you on a good score on a test, or give you a high five after riding an awesome wave…she'd always tease me, saying I was a kiss up. I remember one day, it was the day you'd first ridden a wave switchfoot. Me and you were sitting there in the sand, looking out at the waves and I was hugging you saying how amazing you were. I heard Lacey clear her throat, and I look behind me to see she'd written 'kiss up' in the sand."

Gabriella joined Troy as the two laughed, memories of the carefree, always funny Lacey pouring in their minds. "I remember after our first date. We came back to your place and I remember sitting on the porch swing with you, your face inches away as we were about to share our first kiss. And then Lacey swung the front door open, stuck her head out the door, and proceeded to remind you how important a first kiss was."

Troy laughed. "I was ready to kill her that night. She almost screwed up our first kiss and almost ruined that night."

"Well she didn't. Both were perfect." Troy smiled and pressed his lips softly against Gabriella's.

"You know, I short-sheeted her bed that night to get her back. You should have seen her face the next morning. She stormed over that day, angrily stomping into the house and pointing her finger at me as I ate my breakfast, threatening my well being."

"I'm sure that would have been priceless. I guess you learned a few tricks from the joke master herself, huh?" Troy nodded, smiling genuinely once again.

_**I remember you like yesterday, yesterday**_

_**I still can't believe you're gone**_

_**I remember you like yesterday, yesterday**_

_**And until I'm with you, I carry on**_

"I am going to miss her so much," Troy sighed, his voice slightly cracking. "I can probably count on one hand the days since birth we've gone without seeing each other. There has been that few."

"I'm going to miss her too Troy. She was like a sister to me."

"I've always thought of her being there until we were old and crippled. All those significant events in my future, I'd see her going through them with me. She has been there every step of the way so far. I can't wrap my head around the fact that she won't be there."

Gabriella reached up, catching his tears with her soft hands, brushing her lips against his forehead, lingering for a moment.

_**Every lament is a love song**_

_**Yesterday, Yesterday**_

_**I still can't believe you're gone**_

"I know it's hard for you baby. But she would want us to keep going, you know?" Gabriella spoke in nothing more than whisper. "If she were here right now, what do you think she'd say?"

Troy chuckled. "Something along the lines of, 'Suck it up Bolton! How do you expect to beat me in a game of one-on-one when you are bawling your eyes out?'."

Gabriella giggled at his impression, causing Troy to smile. "I think she'd want us to remember all those good times with her. She was always there for both of us, and she made a profound impact on us while she was here."

"Yeah," Troy sighed. "If it wasn't for her, I may have never asked you out. Or at least it would have taken me much longer to do it." Troy grinned as he thought of what had happened that fateful day.

_Troy ran a hand through his hair, pacing in his bedroom, his stomach already in knots. _

"_What's up Gabriella?" Troy shook his head. _

"_Hi Gabi." Troy groaned at his high voice. "No no no. Not sexy enough. Hmm…sexy." _

"_Hey beautiful," Troy said, attempting a deep, suave voice. _

"_You call that sexy?" Troy spun around and rolled his eyes at his smirking cousin leaning in his doorway. "Do you honestly expect to sweep her off her feet with that?" _

"_Lacey, go away. Can't you see I'm busy right now? I have to get this right." _

_Lacey ignored his protests and stepped inside, crossing her legs underneath her as she sat on his bed. "Well, you're in luck, loverboy. I'm gonna help." _

_Troy sighed, knowing he could use some advice. "Alright. Go ahead." _

_Lacey clapped excitedly while Troy chuckled at her enthusiasm. "Okay. First off, stop trying to over do things. Gabriella is a very down to earth girl. Just be casual. Act normal. A simple, 'Hey Gabi' works fine. What's your next line after that?" _

_Troy cleared his throat. "I was thinking…" Troy appeared deep in thought. His mind raced with ideas, but he kept shaking his head. "Ugh, I don't know. Help me out please?" _

"_Where are you going to take her?" _

"_Dinner at the end of the pier. Then walking along the beach, looking at the tide pools, 'cause she loves to do that." _

_Lacey grinned, happy for her cousin who was finally getting up the nerve to ask out his crush of two years. "Well then, just ask her if she wants to go out with you to dinner on whatever night." _

_Troy turned around, looking in the mirror, his hands in his pockets. "Hey Gabi. I was wondering if you would like to go out with me to dinner tomorrow night, on a date?" Troy spun back around looking at Lacey. "How was that?" _

"_Perfect." Lacey smiled. _

"_What if she says no?" Troy scratched the back of his neck, the nerves kicking in once again. _

"_She won't say no Troy." _

"_How can you be sure?" _

"_I've been friends with her for as long as you have," Lacey shrugged. "I see the way you look at each other, and I know she feels the same way." _

_Lacey stood up off the bed, taking a few steps towards Troy. She swung her arm around his shoulders giving him a friendly hug. "Go get her." _

_A huge smile erupted on Troy's face, his eyes lighting up. He quickly wrapped his arms around Lacey giving her a big hug._

"_Thanks Lace," Troy said quietly before rushing out of his room. _

Gabriella brushed her lips softly against Troy's cheek. "She was always rooting for us. I can't even begin to say how thankful I am that she was there to push you to ask me out. I don't know what I'd do without you."

"Me either babe," Troy muttered softly. "I love you so much. You mean so much to me. I don't want to ever lose you." Troy's voice cracked, his emotions getting the best of him.

Tears pricked Gabriella's eyes at his confession. "I love you too Troy. And I'm always going to be right here. We'll get through this."

"Together," Troy said, cupping her face in his hands.

Gabriella leaned down and their lips met in a sweet kiss, the two wrapped in each other's arms, seeking out the comfort and support they both so desperately needed.

_**Every lament is a love song**_

_**Yesterday, Yesterday**_

_**Oh so long my friend, so long**_

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**AN: I hope you liked it. I'll be posting some other oneshots, and a new story in the next few weeks. **


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